Peace in exchange for land? For many Ukrainians, it's too painful to contemplate

FILE PHOTO: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko greets servicemen of the Svoboda (Freedom) battalion from the elite Storm Brigade "Rubizh" of the National Guard of Ukraine before an award ceremony for fighters, who have recently returned from the frontline in the Bakhmut area of Donetsk region, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv region, Ukraine April 11, 2024. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich/File Photo

KYIV (Reuters) - Vitali Klitschko, the former heavyweight boxer who is now mayor of Kyiv, ventured last month into hazardous political territory: he delicately suggested in an interview that Ukraine might need to cede land to end its battle against Russia.

After a flood of angry online comments, he walked back his comments, saying on Facebook that "territorial concessions contradict our national interests and we must fight against their implementation until the last".